I (Almost) Do
by swanbucks
Summary: Set 5 years after the Season 5 finale. Emma and Regina were married but separated a year and a half after their wedding. Henry finds a letter in Regina's attic and sets out to reunite his moms.
1. Two Towns, Two Moms

**A/N:** Yes, I did get the inspiration for this story from Taylor Swift's song of the same name. Set 5 years after the Season 5 finale. Emma and Regina were married but separated a year and a half after their wedding. Henry finds a letter in Regina's attic and sets out to reunite his moms. Flashbacks are in italics!

Chapter 1: Two Towns, Two Moms

Henry Mills sat quietly in the backseat of his mother's yellow volkswagon as they travelled the 4 hour distance to arrive in Storybrooke, Maine from Boston. He hated the commute but he wasn't going to pass up the chance to see both his mothers on a weekly basis. Every Friday he left his room in Boston and arrived the next week to his room in Storybrooke. His moms had been married but separated a year and a half later. It's now been a year since the separation and Henry is used to it. Emma left Storybrooke to join the police force in Boston while Regina stayed in Storybrooke as the mayor. No one really had an explanation as to why his mothers had left each other nor was it ever discussed between them. Henry had asked but both women were reluctant to share any information. So Henry eventually had stopped asking, and was just content with the fact that he still got to see both of them.

"Henry?" Henry looked away from the window to meet his blonde mother's eyes in the rearview mirror.

"Yeah Mom?"

"Make sure to remind her that you're spending an extra day with me next week so that I can help you with that project." said Emma. That was another thing. His mothers only referred to each other as "her" or "she" and didn't dare breathe the other's name.

"Yeah I will. And thanks for the help." replied Henry.

Emma smiled as they passed the Storybrooke sign and headed down Main Street. The car parked in front of Granny's Diner and they stepped out.

"It's colder here than it is in Boston." mentioned Emma as they walked up the stairs to the diner and entered.

"It usually is, but that's a good thing!"

Emma waved to Ruby as they sat down in a booth. "Why is that a good thing?"

"Because it means you can buy me hot chocolate…"

"With cinnamon." finished Emma as they laughed.

"One hot chocolate with cinnamon and a coffee and bearclaw coming up." said Ruby as she came to stand at their booth.

"Ruby you're wonderful." said Emma as she stood up to give the girl a hug. Ruby laughed.

"I know." replied Ruby as she went to go fetch the order.

"So what are your plans for tomorrow?" asked Emma.

"I'm probably going to be helping out at the stables." said Henry. A few months after they had dealt with the latest crisis in town aka the Evil Queen, Regina had decided that she would teach Henry horseback riding. Realizing that Regina and the Evil Queen could never be separated but needed to learn to coexist was easy. Rejoining Regina and the Evil Queen was easy. Regina learning to be at peace with herself and her dark self was somewhat less easy. She still struggled with it occasionally. Teaching Henry horseback riding was definitely not easy. Many tantrums had been thrown and there had been a 3 month period where he absolutely hated horses. 5 years had given him a lot of time to practice though and it was now a pastime that he quite enjoyed.

"That's good." said Emma as she smiled back at Henry. Their order was placed in front of them and Emma took a sip of her coffee.

"Are you going to be working on that Henderson case this week?" asked Henry.

"Yeah, but don't worry I'll keep you updated kid." said Emma as she checked her phone. 'It's 5:50, I'd better get going." said Emma as downed her coffee in one gulp and got up to leave.

"What about your bearclaw?" said Henry as he pointed to the pastry on the table.

"I'll take it on the road. Love you." replied Emma as she leaned in to give Henry a kiss on the head and walk out the door of the diner. Henry watched as his blonde mother got into her car and waved to him. He waved back and checked his phone, 5:55. He leaned back into his seat as he texted a friend from school. At 6:00, he heard the familiar click of heels across the diner's floor and looked up to see his brunette mother settling into the seat across from him.

"Hello Henry." said Regina.

"Hi Mom." said Henry as he smiled back up at her.

"How has your day been?" asked the brunette as she smoothed down her silk blouse.

"Good, I biked around the city earlier this morning and then I slept most of the drive here." replied Henry as he drank the last of his hot chocolate.

"Are you finished?"

"Yeah."

Regina stood up from her seat as Henry used a napkin to wipe his mouth then got up from his seat. "Let's go home." said Regina as she put her arm around his shoulder.

Cutlery clinked together as Henry moved around the dining room setting the table.

He placed a cup and a fork on the table and then entered the kitchen.

"Table is set!"

Regina didn't look up from the chicken she was slicing as she replied "Alright, thank you. I'll just finish this and then I'll bring it in. You could grab the vegetables and potatoes though."

"Okay." Henry grabbed the bowls of vegetables and potatoes into the dining room and placed them on the table as he sat down. A few minutes later Regina entered with the chicken and seated herself.

"How's Storybrooke been?" asked Henry as they started eating.

"Fine. Running a town is not as fun as I had originally hoped when I cast the first curse. Sometimes I wish for another quest or curse but then other times I don't mind the peace and quiet." replied the brunette.

"Yeah, I think we're good without any curses for a while." said Henry as they laughed.

"Anything special you want to do this week?"

Henry swallowed a piece of chicken as he replied: "Yeah, I wouldn't mind going riding for a whole day. We haven't done that in a while."

"I'm sure that can be arranged. The only other plans I had this week was to clean the attic. I was going to do it last week but I figured I would wait so you could help me." said Regina.

"The attic?" questioned Henry.

"Yes, it hasn't been cleaned in forever, and I need to clear some space around the house anyways."

"I've never been up there" mentioned Henry.

Regina smirked. "That's why I wanted your help. I have some things I've collected from your younger years that you might want to see."

"Oh no. Please don't tell me we're gonna spend the whole day looking at my handprints/footprints or something." retorted Henry.

Regina rolled her eyes. "Really Henry?"

"Ok fine, I'll look at my cute baby stuff with you if only to save you from the stacks of paperwork you have." quipped Henry.

"That's my boy." said Regina as she ruffled her son's hair.

Let me know what you thought! Reviews are appreciated.


	2. A Sweater

**A/N** : Hopefully I will be able to update this story weekly. I was planning on updating this yesterday but I was preoccupied with Lana's birthday. Flashbacks are in italics!

Chapter 2: A Sweater

Henry Mills woke up the next day in his Storybrooke bed. He made his way downstairs to meet his mother who was cooking breakfast in the kitchen.

"Good morning Henry!" said Regina as she turned around from the stove.

"Morning. What are you making?" asked the boy as he grabbed a stool at the counter and took a seat.

"Eggs, would you like some?"

"Nah, I'll stick with cereal." said Henry as he went to the cupboard.

Regina turned back towards the stove. "Someone is picky today."

"No, it's just that Em… I had a lot of eggs last week." mentioned Henry.

"Alright. Would you like to start cleaning the attic today? I have some paperwork at the office but I can work on it later tonight." said Regina as she flipped some eggs on a plate and sat down beside him.

"Yeah sure!" replied Henry.

"As soon as you finish your breakfast why don't you head upstairs and get ready, and I'll meet you at the top of the stairs." suggested Regina.

"Okay. "

15 minutes later the pair was pulling down the ladder to the attic. Regina coughed as a small cloud of dust came down from the opening.

"When was the last time you came up here?" asked Henry from the bottom of the ladder.

"I think it was last year, I put some old clothes up here." remarked Regina as she handed Henry a box labeled: Old Clothes.

"Here, why don't we take a few more boxes downstairs and then open them in the living room. " said Regina as she reached up to grab another box and then dropped it as she felt a searing pain going through her shoulder.

"Mom! Are you okay?!" exclaimed Henry as he helped his mother down from the ladder.

"I'm fine. Let me just grab another box."

"No, I'll grab it. " said Henry as he climbed up the ladder. As he climbed back down he spoke again: "You exert yourself too much. You could use magic for some things, especially heavy lifting like this"

Regina shook her head. "No Henry, I will not use magic for menial things I can do myself."

"Okay. Take the box of clothes, and I'll take these two downstairs."

 _Regina Mills gave a wave of her hand as the popcorn bowl Emma was reaching for flew across the living room. Henry burst out laughing._

" _Really Regina? " said Emma as she rolled her eyes. "Aren't I the childish one?"_

" _You are. But that doesn't mean I can't have my fun. " said Regina as she smirked at Emma._

" _Are we sure that we fused the Evil Queen back with yourself?" remarked Emma. Regina hit Emma gently with a pillow as Henry hopped off the couch. Emma shrieked as she fell off the couch._

" _Honestly you guys are the weirdest people sometimes. Can we get back to the movie?" said Henry as he retrieved the popcorn from the other side of the room._

" _Only if you mother gets me a drink in exchange for hitting me with a pillow." countered Emma._

 _Regina waved her hand again as a mug of hot chocolate with cinnamon appeared in her son's and Emma's hands._

" _Are we satisfied Princess?" questioned Regina._

" _Very." replied Emma as she smiled back at the brunette. Half an hour later, the movie finished and Henry headed upstairs to bed while Emma and Regina cleaned up the living room._

" _How are you?" asked Regina as she pointed the remote at the TV and turned it off._

" _Um, great, what's up with the questioning?" asked Emma._

" _No I meant how are you feeling after the incident with Hook."_

 _The blonde shrugged her shoulders as she bent down to pick up stray pieces of popcorn off the ground. "You know Regina you can call it a breakup. I'm fine. Just trying to heal. It's different when you lose a person you love vs. having the person you love stop loving you."_

 _Regina paused. "To be honest, you're too good for Hook."_

" _That sounds familiar," said Emma with a strangled laugh._

" _I mean it. If that pirate is upset because you would rather stay here in Storybrooke and spend time with your family or Henry rather then go sailing for a year across realms with him, that's his problem. "_

" _I know I know, I just thought he would have understood."_

" _All that matters is that your family understands. "_

 _Emma raised an eyebrow. "So are you a part of this family?"_

" _No, I'm just the supportive friend." said Regina as she gave a small smile at Emma._

Regina Mills settled herself on the couch downstairs as Henry sat down beside her. The brunette opened the first box and pulled out some old clothes. Her hands rummaged through the fabrics, and then suddenly paused as her fingers traced over a grey wool sweater. "Henry?'

"Yeah Mom?" said the boy as he looked up from the second box he was opening.

"This is hers. Please return it." said Regina as she picked it up with two fingers and dropped it on his lap.

"Oh, okay. Is there anything else?"

"No, just please go put it away." sighed the brunette.

"Sure." replied Henry as he ran back upstairs to put it away and return to Emma next week.

Regina placed her fingers on the temples of her forehead as she leaned back on the couch.

 _It had been one of the worst storms that Regina had seen in Storybrooke and she unfortunately was outside in the middle of it. She had been driving home from the office after staying late and her car had stalled on her. She pulled over to the curb and waited in the car for a few minutes, hoping the storm would soon pass. Suddenly through the fog and the mist she saw a pair of headlights and then a familiar yellow volkswagon pulled up beside her, and after a few minutes Emma stepped out._

 _Regina rolled down the window as Emma opened an umbrella._

" _Hello Sheriff Swan, what lovely weather we're having. " quipped Regina._

" _Yes, it seems like you're stuck in your car though. Couldn't magic yourself back to your house? "_

' _It stalled. I could but I wanted to experience being stuck in a storm." deadpanned Regina. " I was just about to call Henry at home."_

 _Emma laughed. "I already did, I called him when I saw your vehicle."_

 _Regina gave Emma a smile. "Thank you, that was very kind."_

" _It's what I do, I'm the Savior. Now can I continue living up to my name and drive you home?"_

" _Oh yes, I was hoping that I would get to also experience a heroic rescue."_

 _Emma rolled her eyes. Regina stepped out of her vehicle and followed Emma to her car. As they were driving towards Regina's house, Emma noticed Regina was shivering._

" _You okay?" questioned the blonde._

"' _I'm fine, just trying not to think about dying in a yellow metal death trap."_

 _Emma ignored the previous comment as she pulled up in front of the mayoral mansion. "Thank you, I appreciate the assistance" said Regina as she got up to get out of the car._

" _Wait" said Emma. She turned around to reach in to the backseat and grabbed a grey wool sweater and handed it to Regina. "Trust me, this is really comfy and warm, plus I doubt you have anything this functional in your closet."_

 _Regina raised an eyebrow but took the sweater from Emma's hands. Emma waved to her as she reached her front steps and entered the house. She greeted Henry and went to have a shower. As she stepped out of the shower she reached for her regular silk pajamas, but noticed the sweater draped over a chair in the bedroom and put it on. The blonde was right, it was comfy and warm. Regina Mills settled into bed and closed her eyes as she relished in the comfort the sweater gave her._

As Henry made his way back downstairs he noticed his mother with her eyes closed on the couch.

"Mom?"

Regina opened her eyes and straightened up.

"Everything okay?"

"Yes, I suppose I'm just tired" replied the brunette.

The boy raised an eyebrow of his own but decided not to question it. "Alright, lets continue unpacking these. "

Regina nodded and the pair spent the next hour and a half going through boxes and deciding what they would keep or give away. " I think that's enough for today" said Regina as she laid down an old teakettle. We still have more boxes we can do later anyways. "

"Yeah, that works." said Henry as he got up. " Is it okay if I head upstairs?"

"Yes, I'll probably have lunch ready around 1" replied Regina.

The boy headed upstairs to his room and closed the door behind him as he lay down in his bed. He grabbed a cellphone and dialed a familiar number. After 3 rings the phone picked up on the other end.

"Hey Henry!." said Emma through the phone.

"Hey Mom. Can I ask you a question? It's just about a sweater you might have lost?"

Emma frowned on the other end. "What are you talking about?"

Henry laughed. "Never mind Mom. I'll explain when I see you next week. "

Emma paused. "Alright Henry, I'm sure you'll have a good explanation for this. Love you and I'll see you next week.

"Love you too Mom. " replied Henry as he hung up the phone.


End file.
